I provide IT services in Matamata, including phone repairs and software updates.
And 3 to 5 times every single week, someone walks into my shop and hands me their phone completely locked up. They can't call anyone. Can't text. Can't do anything. The screen is just wall-to-wall pop-ups.
Every time, it's the same story.
They clicked something that said "Your storage is full — clean it now." Or a QR code someone showed them. Or "Recover your deleted photos." It looked real. It looked helpful. So they trusted it.
And most of the time, it's an elderly person standing there looking embarrassed, telling me their grandkids are going to be upset with them.
That's what gets me.
They've got nothing to be embarrassed about. They were targeted on purpose. These ads are designed to look trustworthy. They're designed to fool people. And they're absolutely everywhere on the platforms we use every day.
I got tired of fixing the same problem over and over and sending people back out to the same environment that broke them in the first place.
So I built something.
It's called NZ Social — a social network and marketplace made right here in New Zealand, for Kiwis.
No predatory ads. No dodgy pop-ups. No selling your data to overseas companies who use it against you.
Just a clean, safe place to connect with your community and buy and sell locally — with zero marketplace fees.
I built it because our community deserves better. Especially the ones who trust what they see on a screen.
We're in the waitlist phase right now — and I'm inviting people I know first.
If you'd like to be part of it, jump on at nz.social. Takes 30 seconds.
P.S. If you know an older family member or neighbour who's been caught out by this stuff — forward this to them. This platform is being built with them in mind.